How Thomas Muller, USMNT standouts Sebastian Berhalter, Brian White and Tristan Blackmon, and head coach Jesper Sørensen turned the Vancouver Whitecaps into improbable MLS contenders

There were early hints the Whitecaps might be good. They opened the MLS season well and climbed to the top of the Western Conference within two months. That raised eyebrows – not least because Sørensen was a relative unknown when he was hired in mid-January. But the MLS regular season is inherently chaotic. Hot starts happen. And even with Brian White scoring regularly, there was a suspicion that Vancouver could still regress to the mean.

What they needed was a signature run, something to prove they were more than a fast starter. Enter the CONCACAF Champions Cup, the perfect proving ground for MLS clubs. Historically, teams from the league have struggled – especially in Mexico – feeding the perception that MLS sides simply can’t win there. Vancouver shattered that narrative, earning two away-goal wins in the knockouts to reach a semifinal showdown with Inter Miami.

And at that point, the magic should’ve ended. This was Lionel Messi in knockout football, after all. Thanks for the memories – time for the big boys to take over.

Except…

They hosted the first leg at BC Place and stunned a full-strength Miami with a 2-0 win. Then they went to Chase Stadium and did it again, a 3-1 triumph to complete an unthinkable 5-1 aggregate rout of MLS’s best. The enchantment eventually faded – Cruz Azul, deeper and more battle-hardened, thrashed them in the final – but even that result felt surprising.

And maybe that’s the biggest compliment you can give this Whitecaps team.